Sam Shepard was first produced in New York in 1963 at Theatre Genesis and many times at La MaMa and Café Cino. Eleven of his plays won Obie Awards including The Tooth of Crime (1972) and Curse of the Starving Class (1976). He was awarded a Pulitzer Prize for his play Buried Child (1979). The critically acclaimed production of True West, starring Jon Malkovich and Gary Sinise opened in New York in 1982. Fool For Love (1982) starring Ed Harris received the Obie for Best Play and Direction. A Lie of the Mind (1985) won the New York Drama Critics’ Circle Award and the Outer Critics Circle Award for Outstanding New Play. Simpatico opened at The Royal Court Theatre after its premiere at The Public Theater in 1994 and was made into a feature film by Matthew Warchus starring Nick Nolte and Sharon Stone. A revised Buried Child under the direction of Gary Sinise opened on Broadway in 1996 and was nominated for a Tony Award. Signature Theatre devoted its season to him that same year. Several new plays opened over the next 10 years in the United States and in London, most notably The Late Henry Moss and The God of Hell. Shepard collaborated with The Abbey Theatre in Dublin, Ireland where Kicking a Dead Horse and Ages of the Moon premiered. As an actor he was perhaps best known for his roles in Days of Heaven, The Right Stuff and Frances. His third book, Day Out of Days was published in 2011. Shepard passed away July 30, 2017.

Past Productions

A Particle of Dread (Oedipus Variations)
Heartless
The Late Henry Moss
When the World Was Green
Chicago
Tooth of Crime
Action
Killer's Head
The Sad Lament of Pecos Bill on the Eve of Killing his Wife
Curse of the Starving Class

Pictured above: Joe Chaikin and Sam Shepard. Photo by Lia Chang.

Now At The Center

Signature Café + Bar

Come early. Stay late.

Offering light, delicious fare and a full bar, the café is the perfect place to unwind before a performance, or to have a drink and dessert after the show!

Late Night Happy Hour SpecialsJoin us after the show for $5 House Beer, $6 House Wine, and $7 House Liquor.

Edward Albee's At Home at the Zoo: Homelife & The Zoo Story

Directed By

Lila Neugebauer

January 30 - March 11, 2018

This new production of Edward Albee’s At Home at the Zoo, directed by Drama Desk Award-winner Lila Neugebauer (Signature Plays, Everybody), honors Legacy Playwright Edward Albee, who passed away in 2016. In act one, Homelife, we meet Peter and his wife, who live a comfortable but vaguely unhappy bourgeois existence; in the second act, the classic The Zoo Story, Peter is forever altered by an oddly persistent stranger in Central Park. With jolts of brutality and Albee’s signature dark humor, this seminal play explores both the love and the cruelty that we inflict on each other every day.

Signature Ticket Initiative

A Generation of Access

The Signature Ticket Initiative is a ticket subsidy program dedicated to making every seat for every performance during a production’s initial run affordable. With the help of Lead Partner The Pershing Square Foundation, Signature Theatre has committed to making our productions affordable through 2031.